1. Field of the invention
This invention pertains to plant pots and more particularly to plant pots containing a fluid reservoir in the lower portion of the plant pot whereby the plant may draw fluid nourishment for a number of days as is needed for normal growth, without refilling of the reservoir.
2. Description of the Prior Art
One of the major problems in growing plants in small pots is that due to the small volume of the pot, water must be added frequently. If too much water is added, the soil becomes over-saturated, the plant roots do not obtain the right air/soil/moisture balance and the plant growth suffers. If not enough water is added, the soil dries out and the plant dehydrates. This situation occurs most frequently in non-commercial situations where owners have located plants in homes or offices, and the press of business or personal affairs causes watering to be neglected.
Another significant problem is soil calcification which is related to the problem of improper watering. In nature, a plant obtains most of its water through capillary action from water tables deep within the soil. Rainfall replenishes the water tables periodically to permit the plant to continue to draw the water it needs. Thus, in nature the water flows from beneath the roots up to the roots. In the normal home or office, a plant is customarily watered by pouring water into the pot on the surface of the soil. Such watering has two detrimental effects: (A) as the water enters the soil surface the interstices between the soil particles retain a portion of the water by capillary action, thus removing it from gravity induced flow to the root level, much lower in the soil. Each level of soil that the water passes through captures and holds some of the water by capillary action. Thus, the amount of water which eventually reaches the roots is dependent upon the depth and porosity of the soil above. Conceivably, were only a small amount of water to be added to a large pot with deep roots, the layers of soil between the top of the pot, where the water was added, and the start of the root level could absorb most of the added water and little or none penetrate to the root level where it would be available for uptake by a plant through the roots; (B) simultaneously with the gravity induced downflow of the added water is an opposite flow caused by the water evaporating from the soil surface. As the water sets in the soil, it dissolves minerals and salts from the soil. In addition, the added water frequently has minerals already dissolved in it. When the interior water is drawn up to the surface, it carries this dissolved mineral load with it. As the water evaporates on the surface, the mineral deposits are left behind, causing a heavy mineral deposit or calcification of the surface of the soil. Each time water is added and evaporates, more minerals are deposited on the surface of the soil. As the mineral content of the soil surface increases, the soil becomes harder and less porous, shutting off necessary airflow to the roots and causing plant growth to falter.
The present apparatus fulfills a long-felt need to solve these problems in an inexpensive-to-produce, easy-to-use container. Other inventors have attempted to solve these problems. Wong, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 3,868,787 issued on Mar. 4, 1975, discloses a holder for supporting a hydroponically cultivated plant. This apparatus required the plant to extend through the open air while supported by a spring-like device. Such an apparatus would not be effective if the distance between the lowest leaf and the first root were small. In addition, the device is complicated and portable only with difficulty. Carlisle, U.S. Pat. No. 4,179,846 granted Dec. 25, 1979, discloses a container wherein roots of a growing plant project through the bottom and sides of a first container restrained by the walls of a second outer container, through an air space to a fluid reservoir wherein they may receive fluid nourishment. In this apparatus, the plant pot is suspended some distance above the fluid reservoir. The reservoir is completely uncovered so roots may enter therein. This complicated apparatus is impractical for use in the home or work-day office. The danger of reservoir spills is high and proper guidance of the plant roots requires constant attention. In addition, initial watering of the pot would tend to make the primary water uptake area to be the pot rather than the reservoir. As a final point, this three-part apparatus is expensive and inconvenient to use.